I have many passions. I have a passion for life and living it for all it's worth. I have a passion for my friends - they are the best I've ever had. I have a passion for cheese, as declared in a previous post. I also have a passion for my children. I love the little "buggers" (thought I'd be nice there!) These are all rather normal passions for a grown man to have.

The one passion I do have that many people think I should have grown out of by now is Star Wars. I love everything Star Wars. I am not so passionate as others who will dress up in cheesy homemade costumes to stand in line at a theater for hours. I am passionate enough about it, though, to have my desk at work littered with Star Wars paraphenalia.

I am passionate enough about it to have a Mr. Potato Head dressed like Darth Vader sitting on top of my big screen tv at home. I am passionate enough about it to have three shelves in my living room displaying a small portion of my collection. (Yes, I live alone!)

I still have many of the original figures I had when I was younger. I still have ships in tact, and the figures still have the accessories (weapons and such). That in itself is amazing as they were toys that were well played with in a youth spent daydreaming about grand space battles. In addition to the older figures, I also have much of the newer stuff based on the older films, as well as some from the newer ones.

Friends look out for me and thanks to them I have a wide collection of Star Wars trinkets, such as a Darth Vader pen that quotes phrases from the films; an R2-D2 Lego pen; various PEZ dispensers.

I have all the movies, including the original versions of the first trilogy on VHS. I am excited that the original trilogy is finally to be released on DVD September 12th. I will own those as well. I also own both volumes of the Cartoon Network Clone Wars series.

I have every game imaginable for XBOX and some for Playstation. I bought my kids a chess board so that I can teach them how to play - it's tokens are all Star Wars related. I have Monopoly and Risk based on Star Wars.

Ok, so maybe this is more than just a passion - it's bordering on an obsession.

Why am I so "passionate" about a cheesy, campy sci-fi film from the '70's? Is it the simplicity behind the ideology of the film? Good vs. Evil. Evil keeps coming but Good will eventually be triumphant? Is it the mythology behind the ways of the Jedi and the mystical Force?

I think it's far more simple for me than all of that. It's a film that I loved as a child. It was the first movie I ever remember WANTING to see in the theater. It was also the first movie I got to see in the theater on my own with my best friend Phillip. The movie reminds me of simpler, happier times in my life, and the world around me. I was only 8 when I saw the first movie. What parent now can imagine their child going anywhere that young on their own?

The movie and memorabilia takes me back to those days of my youth, if only for an instant, of those grand space battles, and to a time that seems so very long ago, and in a galaxy far, far away . . . .

Everyone has some little piece of heaven that they cannot seem to live without. I'm sure we can, but don't really want to. In most cases, it's something that is not at all good for you. Some are worse than others. For some this would be alcohol. For some, well, they need something a little harder. Others will take the less harmful route to heaven - chocolate.

For me though, it seems to be cheese. Yes, cheese. I absolutely love cheese. I knew of my affinity for the creamy hunk of dairy for some time now, but have only recently realized how deep that affection runs in my viens. You can say there is Easy Cheez flowing through my arteries.

This past weekend I spent the most amazing weekend with the woman I love, and as perfect as it was, there was one thing glaringly missing - Cheese. She doesn't like cheese. Everyone just calm down . . . it's ok. She is still a wonderful woman, just a little misguided. I wouldn't change her for the world. This isn't about her though. It's about the wonderful cheese.

I realized that upon my return home from that visit that I was craving that wonderful concoction of perfectly aged and formed curds. I didn't really care what it was - cheddar, swiss, provolone. I just knew I needed cheese, and lots of it.

I was saved by the freshest mozzarella I have had in a very long time. As well as brie, provolone, and cheddar. Along with this were little cherry tomatoes, olives, ham, pepperoni, and little beef sticks. It was a much needed fix.

Maybe it's unnatural to have such a desire for a dairy product, but I just can't help myself. I am a cheese addict.

There, I said it. I am hooked on gouda, muenster, feta . . . it is my downfall. It is my crutch. It is, alas, the cross I must bear. I love cheese!